Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2006 Jul;39(1):96-104.
doi: 10.1016/j.jadohealth.2005.11.002.

A comparison of Web and print media for physical activity promotion among adolescent girls

Julie T Marks  1 , Marci K Campbell, Dianne S Ward, Kurt M Ribisl, Barbara M Wildemuth, Michael J Symons
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

A comparison of Web and print media for physical activity promotion among adolescent girls

Julie T Marks et al. J Adolesc Health. 2006 Jul.

Abstract

Purpose: To compare the effectiveness of a Web-based physical activity (PA) intervention with identical content delivered in a printed workbook among a sample of adolescent girls.

Methods: Participants consisted of 319 girls with home Internet access enrolled in four middle schools within one school district. A randomized trial design was used to compare changes in PA self-efficacy and intentions after two weeks of exposure to either a Web- or print-based intervention delivered to their home. Self-reported physical activity was assessed as a secondary outcome. Analysis of covariance was conducted to determine changes between the intervention groups while controlling for baseline levels of PA constructs.

Results: Both Web and print groups had significant changes in physical activity self-efficacy (Web: t[155] = 2.58, p = .01; print: t[156] = 3.11, p = .002) and intentions (Web: t[157] = 2.27, p = .02; print: t[159] = 6.32, p < or = .001). The print group demonstrated significantly greater increases in intentions compared with the Web group (F [1,315] = 13.53, p < or = .001). Self-reported physical activity increased significantly in the print group only (t[159] = 3.21, p = .002).

Conclusions: It cannot be assumed that new media technologies are superior to traditional media such as print for health communication to adolescents. These results suggest that a printed workbook was more effective than an identical website for increasing physical activity intentions and behavior among a sample of middle school girls.

PubMed Disclaimer

Publication types